10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat
by SemimaruNoSeki
Summary: Sengoku Strays hospital/modern AU. Nobunaga x Kasane
1. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I Part 1

Disclaimer: All credit goes to the author of Sengoku Strays, Shingo Nanami, and the writer of these drabbles フクロウ, whom I've gotten permission to translate and upload her stories on this website. If you are curious to see the original/untranslated version, please go to my profile and click on the link that says Fukurou: Sengoku Strays. Anyway I hope you enjoy this modern/hospital AU of Sengoku Strays!

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10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I

Part One

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"So when will you be able to leave the hospital, Nee-chan?" Masamune propped himself up at the edge of her bed.

"It shouldn't be long. I just need to wait for the antibiotics to do its work. The doctor told me I should be here for about 2, 3 days."

"It's nothing all that serious then!" Kotetsu hugged and nuzzled against his sister. Cuddling against her cute brothers, Kasane also returned the hug.

"So Kasane-chan, what's the doctor like? Is he nice?" Kotetsu asked. Hearing her brother's innocent question, Kasane's face drooped down gloomily.

"…How should I say it, he's really scary."

"S-scary?"

"Yeah, he's the kind of guy that always looks down on you." Kasane informed them with an unpleasant expression. Days before she felt an abnormal pain at her side, so she was brought over to the closest university hospital. After they examined her abdomen, they took her away from the internal medicine department over to the surgical department where the doctor there was urged to take her X-ray.

The doctor who is in charge of her was surprisingly young and quite attractive, but Kasane soon discovered he also had an overbearing attitude and a face so scary that she felt more uncomfortable than impressed around him.

"…Well if it's just 2, 3 days then I'm sure I'll be fine. Ahahaha," Kasane optimistically laughed.

"Whose going to be fine?"

"Hiii-!"

Hearing the deep voice suddenly cut into their conversation, all three siblings jumped up with fright. As the three shifted their gaze towards the doorway, they saw a young man clad in a white coat. The beautiful man whose crimson eyes glared down at them.

"…It's time for your medial examination." He promptly shooed her brothers to leave the room with a small flick of his wrist. Overwhelmed by the man's pressuring aura, the two brothers immediately retreated from their sister.

"Hurry up and pull up your shirt," he ordered while adjusting the stethoscope in his ears. A sullen Kasane obediently followed his instructions.

"See, see ya Kasane-chan. We'll go home now."

"Eh?"

"We'll come back tomorrow!"

Scared off by the doctor, the two bothers hastily waved goodbye and left the room.

"Uuuuuu…"

"Hmph."

As Kasane dejectedly watched her twin brothers abandon her, the man snorted out a tiny laugh and pressed the stethoscope to her skin. Listening to her heartbeat, he found no irregularities and promptly packed the instrument away then moved on to check her throat. After checking her body temperature, he discovered that she had a small fever, most likely a small side effect of the antibiotic.

"Do you feel any pain?"

"Um… Not really…"

"I see," regardless if heard her comment or not, the man curtly replied back. She puffed out her cheeks at his inconsiderate attitude. His attitude sure hasn't changed since she had her first medical examination with him. She's a sick person, not to mention **his** patient. Couldn't he treat her a little nicer? There were other doctors that seemed to be really kind to their patients, so why did she get stuck with him of all people? Kasane wondered if she was cursed with bad luck. Arrogant, taciturn, authoritative, and terrifyingly scary… He seemed to be like one of the lords in the historical dramas, Kasane thought by chance.

(…Wouldn't Tono-sama actually be a perfect nickname for him?)

Kasane giggled at the thought. It was perfect. It seriously suited the man right in front of her.

"…What."

"Ah, no! It's nothing!" Kasane immediately stopped laughing and rigidly straightened her back. If he finds out that she happened to think of a nickname for him and had the guts to laugh at it, he'll most definitely get mad at her. That'll be scary to see, so might as well lock up the nickname into the depths of her heart….

"Doctor Oda, your next patient is…"

"Ah…"

In respond to the male nurse who urged him to meet his next patient, Nobunaga stood up.

"That antibiotic is strong so tell me if you feel any discomfort in your body. After you eat, take the medicine I prescribed for you."

"Ehhhh-."

"…Got any complaints?"

"Of, of course not!" Kasane fervently shook her head while Nobunaga glared down at her. Afterwards he indifferently turned around with a click of his heel and followed the nurse out of her room.

And just like that… her room became really quiet. Kasane didn't have a neighbor in the room, she was all alone.

Because there weren't any other exclusive vacant rooms for one person, Kasane was stuck for 2-3 days in a normal room all by herself.

"…S…scary."

Kasane has always been known as a coward.

She has always been very weak against things like demons, ghosts, and bugs.

"…Haha, I'll be fine… right? There… aren't any ghosts… in here… right…?" she nervously talked to herself. If she just sits here and do nothing all day, she might actually disillusion herself.

"…For the time being, I should go buy juice or something," Kasane muttered and scrambled out of bed.

**TBC**

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So I hoped you enjoyed this chapter... despite my horrible translation. Maybe I should get a beta or something... Anyway make sure to thank フクロウ for these stories!


	2. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I Part 2

Disclaimer: All credit goes to the author of Sengoku Strays, Shingo Nanami, and the writer of these drabbles フクロウ, whom I've gotten permission to translate and upload her stories on this website. Here's chapter two, enjoy!

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10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I

Part Two

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Enter the coins, push the button…

**Clank!**

A cold canned juice dropped from the vending machine.

Kasane opened the can and gulped down its contents. As she drank, she began to wander about the hospital.

"Hey, did you know that there's a new patient in **that **room… you know, room 203?"

"You're joking! Seriously~!?"

Coincidently passing by a pair of chatting nurses, Kasane halted and unwittingly eavesdropped on their conversation. Why would those nurses talk about her room? Making sure she wouldn't be seen, she carefully distanced herself.

"They appear in that room you know, and it's not just a rumor."

EHHHHHH!?

Kasane paled and involuntarily shuddered. 'They appear', she said. What did she mean by that!?

"Certainly not that, certainly not that!" Kasane tried concentrating on her thoughts, but still, unfortunately, managed to overhear the nurses' next words.

"They say that late at night something presses the nurse call button when no one is there. And I heard from several patients that they saw a strange woman entering that room~"

"That so creepy…! I would never want to be admitted in there…"

"Because everyone feels that way we never use that room right~…? Though we have no choice to use it now since all of the rooms are now all occupied…"

"You better not tell that girl about this! You better not scary her, okay?"

"I already know that~"

B-but I heard it all alreadyyyyyyyyyy!

Kasane sprinted far away from the nurses, deeply regretting her decision to eavesdrop on the entire conversation.

(T-tell me it's all a huge liiieee…!)

Gasping for breath, Kasane collapsed in the corridor. After hearing that, how could she return back to that room? There's no way she could do it.

If there was another person with her, that'll be totally fine but all by herself…!?

W-what should she do? Change her room? But that's probably impossible request to fulfill. They did say all the other rooms were occupied after all…

"I… I wanna go home…!" Kasane fervidly wished. She wished to go home right now. She wanted to see her sibling's again. She wanted to peacefully sleep in her own bed…!

"…What are you doing?"

"Hiii!"

Kasane shrieked when she heard the voice suddenly call out to her.

"T-tono-, sama…"

"Ha? Tono-sama?"

"Eh, eeeeeeeeeeehh! It's nothing!"

Realizing she called him his secret nickname, Kasane trembled and frantically clamped her mouth shut. In return, Nobunaga narrowed his eyes and glared down at the girl.

"What're you doing out of your room."

"J-just went… to buy juice…"

"And you found it necessary to crouch on the ground and block this entire area all for yourself?"

"I-I'm so sorry! I'll get out of the way!"

Kasane apologized and quickly moved out of his way, but Nobunaga continued to glare at her dubiously.

"U-um, Doctor Oda."

"What."

"That… room… is possible to change… Never mind, I'm sorry, stop glaring at meeee!"

Unable to endure Nobunaga's condemning gaze, Kasane repeatedly apologized. Nobunaga sighed with mild disbelief and turned towards her again.

"You're disgruntled about something."

"…Um, isn't it scary…?"

"Scary?"

Nobunaga created a confused expression at her words.

"B-because…! R-right now is okay! There's plenty of patients and nurse and it's all bright and all! B-but when night comes, it'll be all dark and stuff and all the lights will be off and I have to sleep all alone in that room…! I-isn't that terrifying…!?"

"…"

"R-right now you thought I was an idiot! I swear you just laughed and thought I was a complete idiot!" Kasane shrieked when Nobunaga jeeringly snorted. Nobunaga immediately covered his ears, not at all interested in listening to her noisy cries.

"You're not even a tiny brat… Aren't you a high school student? For you to be scared at this age…"

"Uuu…"

Kasane feebly held her tongue when Nobunaga's words critically attacked Kasane's weak spot. Kasane already knew well enough that it was shameful to be scared of ghosts and demons at this age, therefore she couldn't object to his point.

"I… I'm just scared of scary things!"

"I see, then stay scared. I need to go over there, so get out of my way."

Pitifully casted aside, Kasane sent reproachful glares to his retreating form. He took no notice of her stares and continued to go about his business.

"Grandpa… isn't coming huh…"

She initially thought about calling her grandfather to accompany her for the night, but there's absolutely no way her strict guardian would listen to her silly request. If he were to stay over in the hospital with her, that'll mean he'll have to leave her little brothers, who are currently in elementary school, all alone at home. There's no way they can leave the twins home all alone like that.

"What should I do~…"

Bowing her head, Kasane strolled out into the hospital's courtyard. Aimlessly wandering about, Kasane passed by many patients who were either rehabilitating or walking about for a breath of fresh air. Still deep in thought, she took a seat at one of benches in the garden and then listlessly stared into the sky until she felt an unknown presence watching her.

"….Eh?" On one of the low branches of a nearby tree sat a bird who stared back at the speechless girl.

No, it's not one of those 'common' birds.

If it was a sparrow or a pigeon or a crow, she wouldn't have this sort of reaction. Nope, this bird was definitely not any of the species Kasane is used to seeing in her everyday life.

"…Eh, a hawk?"

Kasane stared at the creature with bewilderment. The only hawks she've seen were in television shows and books.

"…Eh, wait. Since when did hawks started living in this area…?"

If memory served her right, weren't hawks were creatures that tend to hang out in the mountains than in the city?

Instead of marveling at the sight of a rare creature, Kasane continued to doubt this inconceivable event.

Before her very own eyes was a gallant hawk with sharp, keen eyes and a cross-like scar on its chest. As it started to preen its feathers, Kasane, still bewildered by the sight, carefully approached the hawk.

"Eh, um, nice to meet you! I am Kusanagi Kasane!"

"…"

The hawk stopped preening and gazed back as if it was attentively evaluating her. For a second, the hawk's expression reminded Kasane of a certain tyrannical lord.

"…I-is it alright if I touch… you?" Kasane asked the hawk, in response it averted its eyes. She gingerly reached out toward the bird, it made no inclination of running away so she closed in until her fingers touched its feathers. Ever so slowly, Kasane stroked the hawk.

"It's actually pretty fluffy. Feels really nice to touch too…"

It first felt smooth to touch but the texture of the feathers were very soft.

Unlike it's initial, unfriendly entrance, the hawk sat perfectly still and closed its eyes, seemingly content toward her strokes.

"S-so cute…"

Discovering the sudden cuteness of the creature, Kasane's heart welled up with warmth. She even wondered if she could keep him.

"… But who's the owner… Where did it come from…" Kasane murmured as she continued stroking the hawk. The hawk took one look at Kasane before taking an abrupt leap onto her shoulder. Overwhelmed by the adorableness of the hawk's actions, Kasane fought the urge to hug the bird with all her might.

"Ara? Isn't that Tenrou?"

Kasane turned her gaze towards to voice, only to find herself surrounded by many nurses, who stationed themselves around her.

"U-um, this hawk, you know this hawk!?"

"Well of course we all do…"

"Right…?"

The nurses all simultaneously nodded and chimed in.

"But this is the first time I've seen Tenrou close to someone other than Doctor Oda."

"He would never come close to us."

"Heh? Doctor Oda?" Kasane inquired.

"That's Doctor Oda's pet. The doctor usually just lets it loose, and it follows Doctor Oda to the hospital here. Isn't it smart?"

"Le- let loose…"

It's certainly true that the hawk is very clever, but is it actually okay to let it loose like this? She thought that finding a hawk in this place would cause a big uproar, however, based on the nurses' reactions, this seemed to be a normal occurrence for them.

"Doctor Oda would always feed him at this spot."

"Heh, heh~… I see…"

"But when we get close, he always flies off right~?" A young nurse grumbled with disappointment.

"Um… If I remember correctly you're Kusanagi-san, the new patient that was admitted here today right? …Um, so how did you do it!? How did you manage to tame Tenrou?"

"Eh!? H-how…"

As one of the young nurses bombarded Kasane with questions, the latter involuntarily recoiled back.

"I also want to get along with Tenrou but he never gets close to me…"

"The one you want to get close to is Doctor Oda, isn't it? It's because you have an unpleasant motive, he never gets along with you."

"As if you're any better! I already know that you guys also want to use Tenrou to get closer to Doctor Oda!" And just like that, the nurses forgotten all about Kasane and began to quarrel viciously amongst themselves.

"Doctor Oda… is pretty popular."

Well it makes sense.

His personality is a bit troublesome, but he is quite handsome. It's quite obvious that he would be popular. To Kasane, he was the type of person whom she would rarely interact with.

"Even so, he has a hawk as a pet… That's amazing…"

Kasane once more stroked Tenrou, who comfortably snuggled against her.

But with a sudden jerk of his head and a quick flap of his wings, he took off from her shoulder and flew off.

"Uwa!" Kasane quietly yelped, her eyes followed Tenrou's whereabouts.

"Doctor Oda!"

Identifying the man, the nurses called out his name. Nobunaga steadily stared at the hawk that situated itself on his arm.

"Uwa…" Kasane said unpleasantly.

"It's rather unusual of him to get close to strangers," he caressed Tenrou and offered him a small piece of beef. He turned his gaze back at Kasane, looking rather intrigued by her.

"What did you do to him."

"I didn't do anything!"

"You're lying. He would never let anyone, but me, touch him."

She wondered where in the world did he get all that confidence from. She stood her ground and puffed her cheeks.

"I didn't do much… He just let me touch him! Please don't wrongly accuse others so easily!"

"…"

Nobunaga shifted his attention to Tenrou, his gaze asked for conformation to Kasane's words. However, Tenrou feigned innocence and busied himself with his meal.

"Oh, Kasane! Are you okay~!?"

"Kasane-san, how are you feeling?"

Hearing the familiar voices coming from the hospital building, Kasane turned around.

"Sayo-san! Hachiya-senpai!"

Standing there were two young girls who waved back at her. One looked like she was strong-minded individual while the other looked very gentle. They were Kasane's friends from school.

"You came to see me!"

Kasane happily rushed over to her two friends where they began to merrily chatted amongst themselves until one of the passing nurses gently reprimanded them for disturbing other patients.

"My room is over here! Let's go!" Kasane eagerly guided her guests through the hallway. The two girls laughed and excitedly followed after her, leaving the forgotten doctor and nurses behind. As they came to their senses, the nurse all returned back to work.

Nobunaga's eyes narrowed as his gaze followed Kasane's retreating form.

**TBC**

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Whew, this was a long chapter to translate! Again I hoped you enjoyed this chapter and remember to check out フクロウ's website and thank her for all her hard work!


	3. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I Part 3

Disclaimer: Again all credit goes to the author of Sengoku Strays, Shingo Nanami, and the author of these lovely stories, フクロウ. I am merely just a translator who wants everyone to enjoy a nice Sengoku Strays fanfic. Okay then, let's get started on chapter three, shall we?

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10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I

Part Three

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"Eh? You're leaving already?"

"'Already?' …It's now evening you know."

"My brother is waiting for me… I'm sorry."

The two girls began to pack up and leave for the day.

The sun had already set, and visiting hours were nearly over. For many hours they were able to talk in Kasane's room, but the pair had to go.

"See you later, Kasane-san."

"Make sure you rest well."

As she watched them leave, Kasane gloomily sank into the covers.

She had so much fun with them that when they left, the biting silence remained.

"Kusanagi-san, it's time to turn off the lights," the nurse called into the room.

Without thinking Kasane blurted, "Eh?" to the woman. "A-alre…ady?

"Of course… Everyone else is starting to sleep as well. Also Kusanagi-san is our patient, you should properly rest your body," she smiled and gently chided Kasane to sleep. Kasane obediently listened to the nurse and laid down. Her eyes foused on the nurse.

"Well then, I'll turn off the light now."

"Eh, you're turning it off now?"

"Yes, since it'll bother the other patients."

Hearing that, Kasane had no choice but to comply.

"If something happens please use the nurse call button to call me."

With a sharp click, the lights turned off and the smiling nurse left the room. Leaving Kasane all alone in the darkness of her room.

"…"

She trembled. Darkness and silence dominated the room, and outside the window she could no longer see sunlight. The only sources of light available was from the tiny electric lamp and the yellow lights from the building across the hospital. Kasane firmly closed her eyes, however she could not sleep. Each time when she tried to fall asleep, she kept thinking of unnecessary thoughts. Kasane pulled the blanket tightly against her chest.

**Clack… Clack…**

From the silent corridor of the hospital, Kasane suddenly heard the sound of small footsteps.

It came closer and closer to her room, low giggles that sounded neither like a man or a woman emerged in the hallway.

Kasane's body immediately stiffened and cold sweat ran down her entire body.

With a final click, the footsteps stopped in front of her room.

Kasane went into full-blown panic mode.

It couldn't be a nurse. Then a fellow patient? But why would they stop in front of her room?

The conversation of the two nurses flashed into her mind.

A strange woman...

**Gatch-**

There she heard the sound of the doorknob forcefully turning-.

"—! ! !"

She dived for the button.

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"Doctor Oda."

"…"

A young nurse called out to Nobunaga who was filing away documents. In her hand was a hot cup of coffee.

"Here."

"…"

He accepted the cup from the offering woman and lined it up with the other mugs that were previously offered by other nurses.

"Oh, those clinical records, they're about the previous patient whom you successfully operated on right? I heard he's now in great health. As expected of Doctor Oda~" she gushed.

Nobunaga grunted in a timely manner and concentrated on the document before him. Truthfully he wanted wanted her to scram off so but instead put up with it in disgust.

This is why he lated late night shifts.

During these shifts, the women would suddenly barge in his office to bring him coffee or offer him midnight snacks and create tons of excuses stay in his room for a while.

No matter how coldly he treated them, no matter how much he tried to handle their behavior, nothing worked. He's fine yelling at them, but was hesitant in raising his voice at night. That's why he always tried to avoid night shifts.

But as a doctor whose licensed to practice medicine, there are times he could not avoid these shifts.

Disregarding Nobunaga, his ill mood plummeted even further as the oblivious lady began to happily talk about herself.

So annoying.

Little by little, the wrinkles on the middle of his forehead increased. There was an unnatural surplus of women who flocked around his presence which only increased his hatred for them. And out of all the nurses, this one was the one who annoyed him the most during his lunch breaks, he's fed up with her.

Always entwining her arm around his without permission, straightforwardly pressing her breasts against him, she was downright vulgar and creepy.

And she never gave up on him.

"Doctor Oda, why don't we eat out sometime?" she giggled with her eyes closed.

And in a flash, he caught her underlying motive and secretly clicked his tongue.

"You know that nearby hotel's store… I heard their food is really good. Want to go?"

There were plenty of good restaurants so why pick that hotel?

The hidden meaning was so obvious Nobunaga couldn't help but sneer out a smile.

So she thought if he's wasted, he'll sleep with her?

She's making a fool out of him.

"So that's where you were, Hongou-san. The nurse call is ringing again you know. It's from the girl you're in charge of."

"Eh~. Again~?" Hearing her coworker's words, the woman overtly glowered.

"That girl pushed the nurse call button as a prank you know?"

"This is her first time hospitalized, she must be nervous. Just go to her."

"Eh~~," she grumbled and turned towards him.

What are those eyes for, it can't be that she wanted him to tell her that there's no need for her to go, right?

"What are you going to do if something did happen?"

"It's okay, she's only here to so we could watch over her antibiotic dosage, right? It's not like she's suffering some sort of disease and she's not injured so why would she need help?" Nobunaga turned towards her.

"…Does that girl happen to be Kusanagi?"

"Ah, now that I think about it, Doctor Oda is in charge of…"

With a face that spelled 'shit' across her face, the woman looked back at him.

"I'll go now."

"…No, it's fine. I'll go."

"Eh, but…"

"I'll go."

Even if she leaves, she'll soon come back and bother him again. And besides, he was slightly interested in his strange patient.

To think that she could easily tame that Tenrou, he's never seen seen anything like it.

"It's probably just a prank doctor. She played a prank on me the last time she pushed the button."

"A prank?"

"Yes. She kept screaming, 'Ghost! A ghost appeared!'… Seriously, I don't have much time to spare, it was frankly very troublesome for me."

Yeah, as if you are one to talk, especially when you always come barging into my office without my permission.

He contemplated on saying that, but didn't. He had enough of this woman, it's too troublesome to say it now.

Pulling the white coat from his chair and tugging it over his arms, Nobunaga left the room.

He ignored the remorseful gaze of the nurse.

**TBC**

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Whew, two more chapters and this arc will be finished! I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter and don't forget to thank フクロウ for writing these stories!


	4. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I Part 4

Disclaimer: Again all credit goes to Nanami Shingo, author of Sengoku Strays, and フクロウ, the author of this story. I am merely a translator, though... a lousy one who wants to other readers, who can't read Japanese, enjoy her stories. Well then, let's get started!

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10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I

Part Four

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(If I recall, this is her room.)

Nobunaga stepped up to Kasane's room. He opened the door and took a step in.

"Mi-miss nurse~!"

With a thud, a heavy object collided into him. Dumbfounded, he regained balance and looked down; frantically clinging onto him was a tiny creature.

"A-again! It appeared again! A-a strange woman… A strange woman came iiinnnnn~!" Sobbing hysterically, the tiny creature, with all her might, gripped her arms tighter around him. He found her body to be very soft and a delicate sweet smell tingled his nose.

She was too frightened to realize she was clinging onto him.

"Oi."

He called out to her in an forbidding manner.

"It, it came out. I can't take this anymore, this room is too scary…! Nurse…!"

"Calm down!"

He firmly held the sniffling Kasane by the shoulders and made her look at him. She blinked. Regaining her sanity, she realized that the person in her arms wasn't her nurse, but a man, more specifically her doctor, and immediately released him from her hold.

"…"

Nobunaga softly exhaled and looked at the girl whose face turned from red to blue to red and blue again.

"Wh-why, why is… Tono-sama here…."

"Tono-sama?"

"It, it's nothing!"

Kasane shook her head.

Nobunaga snorted in disbelief.

"Hiiiiii-!" she shrieked with fright when he forcefully grabbed her head.

"I remember you saying that to me before. Tell me what you meant by that."

"No, no, It's… really nothing… ow! Owowowowow! I'm sorry! I'll tell you! I'll tell you so let go!"

Grasping her head tightly in his hand, he watched at the teary-eyed Kasane squeak in pain.

"So noisy." He quickly released her head and flicked her forehead before pulling back.

"U,um… well… you, Doctor Oda is well… kinda like those old lords… I thought… So the nickname kinda just stuck…"

"…"

"I, I'm sorry, I'm sorry!"

Nervously she looked up to return his unreadable gaze. It wouldn't surprise her if he went wild with rage after discovering her ridiculous nickname that she made up all on her own.

"…?"

"Hmph, it's not bad, that nickname."

"Eh."

Kasane gaped at his words. And here she thought he would undoubtedly get angry at her.

"It's a nickname that only a brat would think of, but I'll give you special permission to call me that."

Stupefied Kasane responded to the smirking Nobunaga, "Huh…?"

"Putting that aside, what's all the fuss about?"

"-! Th-that's right, please save me Tono-sama…!"

Gaining his approval, Kasane wasted no time using his nickname.

"The, the ghost! The ghost came back into this room…!"

"…"

He coldly gazed down at her as she frantically cried and implored him to save her.

Though he did not speak, Kasane could see his expression read 'what the hell are you talking about?'.

"It, it's true!"

She desperately urged him to trust her, but Nobunaga only creased his brow.

Sniffling, she began to weep on him.

"I can't stay in this soon any longer…! I beg you, I don't care where, let me sleep somewhere else. Please…!" she begged him. She didn't care how she looked at the moment.

"You know I can't do that, idiot," he tightly seized her head once more in his grasp.

"Bu-but… Can't you do something about it…I beg you, please…!"

"Impossible requests are impossible to fulfill," he firmly told her.

Kasane slumped down to the floor. This was horrible, she still had to stay in this terrifying place for three more days.

She lost all hope.

With one look at Kasane's sniveling form, Nobunaga deeply sighed.

"…Stop crying. I'll stay spend the night with you."

"…Eh?"

Nobunaga pulled out the chair that was situated by her bed and sat on it. From the window, a thin layer of light from outside pooled around the area.

"Eh…. Eh? Ehhh?"

She blankly stared after him. Ignoring her, Nobunaga magically produced documents, books, and clinical records out of his coat and started reading them.

"Eh? Spend… night?"

"Because you had to spend the night all alone in this room, you must have became stressed and therefore had crazy hallucinations. But even if what you say did happen, then you wouldn't be worried if I'm here with you."

"Eh… b-but, is that-"

Is this acceptable?

She never heard stories of doctors giving special treatment to patients like this.

"…Well of course if an emergency occurs, then I'll have to leave. Besides, this is a good opportunity for me to finish paperwork."

"Bu-but you need to go out your way to stay in this dark place…"

"What, are you saying that you want to be alone?"

"No, no thank you for leaving me in your care!" she bowed deeply before climbing onto her bed. She had no idea what his motives were, but as Kasane studied the man whose beautiful profile was illuminated by the moonlight and the street lights below she thought, "…He's irritating but… he looks like he came straight out of a picture right now."

The view of Nobunaga concentrating on difficult documents seemed so cool to her that in order to calm down her fluttering heartbeat, she called out to him.

"Why are you doing this for me? The nurse didn't attempt to do anything even when I told her a ghost appeared…"

"Ah, that nurse," Nobunaga faintly thought as he hazily remembered that woman. Well judging by that nurse's personality, she must have thought Kasane to be an idiot and left without offering her any help.

If she had the time to passionately pay attention to him, then she should have use that time to help this poor girl instead.

"…There's a lot of bothersome people who barge into my office, so this works out perfectly for me. Besides, even they wouldn't dare try to come into an occupied room when the patient is resting.

"Ah, ahh, I see.. So that's why… Tono-sama is quite popular, huh," she wryly smiled. So in other words, he wasn't doing this out of pure kindness.

Still…

"Um… well… For staying with me… Thank you very much…" her voice became gradually softer as she thanked him.

Even though this happened to be convenient chance for him, his presence in the room made her feel safe.

When she was alone she couldn't help but feel scared. With someone at her side, she didn't feel so uneasy.

That's why deep in her heart, she was thankful towards Nobunaga.

As she expressed gratitude to him, Nobunaga's looked up, eyes widely opened.

(Eh, why was he staring at her like that. Did she say something crude?)

Lost in her innermost thoughts, she almost didn't notice the big palm that rested on top of her head.

"Brats like you should be sleeping right now." With a firm push on her head, he shoved Kasane down further into the covers.

Realizing that he's treating her like a little kid, Kasane sulked while Nobunaga indifferently ignored her gaze.

"…Goodnight," she chuckled and closed her eyes. And soon after, Nobunaga heard her breath slow down to rhythmic cycles; she finally fell asleep. Listening to her soft snores, Nobunaga glanced at his palm.

It was unusual of him to initiate physical contact as he did with Kasane moments ago. He always loathed the touch of the inconsiderate nurses, and he never initiated contact to them.

Now that he thought about it, he didn't feel unpleasant when Kasane accidentally hugged him. Her sweet scent still lingered in his mind, as if it was trying to signify something to him.

(Such a strange girl.)

He thought as a rare, genuine smile formed on his face. However, he could now understand Tenrou's sudden attraction to Kasane a little more.

**TBC**

* * *

I hope you had an enjoyable time reading this chapter. I'll try to finish chapter five by tomorrow then go back to translating フクロウ's drabbles in Owari's Stray afterwards. Have a nice day and make sure you thank フクロウ for writing these lovely stories!


	5. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I Part 5

Disclaimer: I'm sure everyone knows that I don't own any characters from Sengoku Strays or the stories posted in this website. Credit all goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. I am just a translator, a very lousy one in fact. Ahahaha... Well then enjoy the last chapter of this arc!

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat I

Part Five

* * *

Three days passed since Kasane was admitted to the hospital and, just as he promised, Nobunaga accompanied her each night.

"Since Tono-sama stayed over, the ghost never appeared again… Well thanks to him I was able to sleep peacefully," she thought. She accepted Nobunaga's presence. It's not like she had a reason to turn him down and if anything, she felt super relieved with him at her side.

She thought he would adhere to his promise for only one day, but when he dropped by to her room the next night, she was pleasantly surprised.

She wondered if it was okay for her to accept his presence so easily, but soon decided to depend on his kindness.

Though Nobunaga was busy with work and not so talkative, he would always respond to her properly when she called out to him. That alone made Kasane very happy. As the eldest sibling in the household, she felt as if she gained an older brother. He still did annoy her time to time, but during this short duration she became rather fond of him.

* * *

"…Doctor Oda!"

"…What."

"Is it true that you spent the night with that patient for three days!?" A number of nurses asked the same question multiple times already. So annoying. Why must he be crossed examined by women who are not related to him in any way? Especially when they're not his family or even his lover.

"Because she was too frightened to be in that room all by herself, she made a huge fuss. As her doctor, I only accompanied her to calm her down. What's wrong with that."

"It's- it's improper to…"

"It's not like I went to her room to slack off, I was able to finish my paperwork over there after all. So who gave you the right to complain to me when it didn't hinder my work?"

"…S-still, that's…"

"If you have the time to idiotically argue about this, shouldn't you go back to work? Especially you." He focused his attention towards the irresponsible nurse who supposed to be in charge of Kasane. The other nurses held their tongue.

Jeering at them, he quickly left the scene.

* * *

However it was true that all the nurses were secretly relieved that Kasane was discharging out of the hospital today. She healed well from the antibiotics. There was no reason for her to stay.

He would always discharge the patient immediately without question. But with her, he was reluctant to do the same. Of course he wanted to use her to get away from annoying coworkers, but there was another reason.

He became fond of her.

He, who was never interested in other people to begin with, became fond of a girl whom he just met three days ago.

For Nobunaga, this was the first time he ever felt this way.

When she leaves this hospital, they'll go about their separate ways. It's not like she needed to continually commute to the hospital afterwards either. Sooner or later she'll forget everything.

…The thought didn't agree with him.

She could easily forget about him, that thought alone left Nobunaga strangely irritated.

With the utilization of his authority as her doctor, he thought of postponing her discharge a little longer. But that would only delay it, at most, 2-3 more days.

She no longer needed any medical attention either.

It'll be meaningless and harmful to prescribe antibiotics to a healthy girl.

And if he wrote down a random disease, everyone will soon see through his intentional misdiagnosis.

Kasane was leaving today. In fact, she must be preparing herself to leave right now.

"…"

Holding his breath, he turned towards Kasane's room.

* * *

"Ah, Tono-sama!"

As he expected, Kasane was in the middle of arranging her belongings. She cheerfully looked up from her task. She must be happy to leave the hospital, his irritation increased at her expression.

"U, um for these three days, thank you for all your help! !" she sincerely lowered her head. Folding her clothes into a big bag, she giggled.

She could anytime now.

"Tono-sama, I hope you try your best at work! Ah, here. This is from my grandpa!" She held out a box of cake.

Her grandfather must be very considerate to have his granddaughter deliver this to him.

But that not what he wanted.

"…Oi."

"Yes?"

In a low voice, he called out to her.

His eyes gazed down her more intimidatingly than before. Startled by his unusual aura, Kasane unthinkingly stepped back.

"Cell phone."

"Yes?"

"…Your cell phone number. Give it to me."

"Eh?"

Her eyes widened. She never would have thought he would ask for her phone number.

"You guys aren't rich, right? When I have time, I'll personally do a medical examination for you. It'll be troublesome if you suddenly have a relapse."

"Eh? But! Wouldn't that cause you trouble…"

"Don't worry. Just think of it as a doctor's obligation to their patient."

"You mean hospitals always had something like a warranty service!? Kasane looked at the place with slight admiration and murmured, "Hospitals are amazing."

He thought it would be difficult to trick her with a pack of lies, but amazingly she's very gullible. And to the clueless Kasane, he urged to again tell him her cell phone number.

"…I'll also give you my contact address. If you need something, use this to contact me." He scribbled his contact information on a piece of paper and forcibly pushed it towards her.

"O…okay…" she shyly accepted it and registered the information into her phone.

"Um, thank you very much… We'll meet each other soon… right?"

"…It's my obligation to do so," with a impassive face, he lied.

Even so, Kasane's head bowed down, ashamed of her embarrassing assumption. She held his note protectively in her hand.

"…The-then until… next time…" she started to leave.

Following the retreating figure, he involuntarily reached out for her arm.

"Tono-sama?"

She looked back at him, perplexed.

(I know, so don't look at me with those eyes. I'm fully aware that it isn't like myself to do this.)

"I'll call you, when it's time for your medical examination," he managed to say, with the best of his ability.

"Okay," she shyly smiled.

A strange desire to never let go of her soft arm free seized him, but, without altering his blank expression, Nobunaga quietly released her.

**TBC**

* * *

I'll be working on フクロウ's drabbles for a little bit before translating the next arc. So I apologize in advance to those who wanted to read more of this AU right away. Anyway don't forget to thank フクロウ for these chapters and have a nice day!


	6. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II Part 1

Disclaimer: Though I believe everyone knows this already, all credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. I'm only a translator who got permission to upload フクロウ's stories to this website. Well then, without further ado, I present you the second arc of this AU. Enjoy!

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II

Part One

* * *

He found it difficult to deal with cats.

"Ah! Good morning, Onii-san*!" the person who greeted me was a young girl who usually passed by this park.

He doesn't know her name.

Since she also doesn't his name, she just calls him 'Onii-san'.

Ikeda returned her greeting with a small nod.

Every time he sees her, she's always wearing her school uniform.

It's probably because they always meet up when she's ready to go to school. He, too, often use this road near the park to go to his workplace, the hospital.

Though he does have a driver's license, he found it to be more healthy and practical to walk to his work, which wasn't very far from his apartment. And that is how he met this girl at this bypath.

Short, unruly black hair that's slightly tinged brown. Wide eyes. Small body.

"How's the kitten's condition?"

"Actually, I just came here, so I still haven't seen it yet," he answered. "We might have to change its bandage again." He took out the antiseptic solution out of his bag. Copying Ikeda, the girl reached into her bag and produced a small milk carton.

"Ehehe! I brought this with me! Since it must be hungry," she grinned. Seeing her smile, he involuntarily relaxed his features. They both entered the park's small forest.

"Kitty~, where are you~?"

The girl called out as she searched the forest. Hearing her voice, a small kitten popped into view.

"Ah, there it is!" Spotting the kitten, she broke into a wide smile.

"Yosh, yosh~, Come here~," she beckoned it to come closer. It mewed and rubbed against her legs.

"I wonder how it's injury is faring?"

"…Well we should check its bandage first," Ikeda said as he maintained a constant distance from them. The girl wryly smiled and took off the kitten's old bandages.

"…The wound is practically healed already. As expected of an animal," Ikeda, still maintaining distance from the creature, studied the gash on its leg. "Well, there's nothing to worry about now, but let's rewrap the bandage one more time."

He tossed the girl a new set of bandages. In return she followed his instructions and carefully dressed the kitten carefully.

"You behaved really well this time! I have milk as a reward~" she poured milk into a small bowl. The kitten lapped it up happily.

"If I wasn't allergic to cats, I could have done the treatment by myself."

"Well, I was there for you so it worked out!" she grinned.

She was certainly an energetic and likable young lady.

* * *

The first time he got to know her was only a week ago.

He found the kitten injured and thought about treating its leg wound. However, due to his allergy, he couldn't touch the kitten. If he recklessly touched it, he would definitely start sneezing, which would only cause difficulties when treating its injury.

However he couldn't bear leaving the pitiful kitten alone. That's when the girl happened to pass by.

In his place the girl treated the cat while he provided instructions.

And so morning after morning they would check on the kitten's condition.

Ikeda, who usually didn't socialize with people, unusually didn't feel fatigued when he was with her.

"Such a strange child," Ikeda thought.

(A strange, but calming girl)

"This cat, is already better now."

"Yes! I'm glad its wound wasn't all that serious!" She happily smiled. She probably thought so from the depths of her heart.

"Ah, I better go to school now," she stated, checking her cellphone.

Time has already flown by.

If she's this panicked after checking the time, he should also head for work.

"Well then, Onii-san, see you later…"

"Um."

The girl who was hurrying to class, stopped and turned her head, "Yes?"

"Um, well…." Ikeda floundered in his speech. "We, well… haven't exchanged names yet…"

"Ah! Now that I think about it, that's right!" The girl straightened her body, her eyes widened with realization. "I'm Kusanagi Kasane! What's your name?"

"…Ikeda, Katsusaburou."

Hearing his name, Kasane repeated, "Ikeda-san, Ikeda-san…" over and over again. She must be either very forgetful or this was her way of memorizing things.

"Well, um, I… don't usually come here to check the cat's condition that often, but if you need anything then here."

He handed her his cellphone number.

"Ah! Then me too…!" Kasane hurriedly took out her cellphone and exchanged numbers with him.

"I'll check the kitten again after school! Bye, Ikeda-san!"

Staring after the smiling girl, Ikeda felt an abnormal and restless feeling clench his heart.

**TBC**

* * *

*Though this phrase usually means just older brother, people can also call young men 'Nii-san' especially when the latter isn't old enough to be called 'Uncle' or any of that. Hopefully this clears up any confusion... hopefully...

Well then, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter! Have a lovely day!


	7. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II Part 2

Disclaimer: Hello again fellow readers! I'm sure you all know this, but I'll announce it anyway! All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. I'm just フクロウ's translator. Ahem, well then now let's begin this chapter shall we?

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II

Part Two

* * *

"What? What's with you suddenly becoming all friendly with a high school student!?" Toukichirou loudly complained at the counter where Nobunaga, Katsusaburou, Nouhime, and Gorouza were drinking.

At Toukichirou's drunken speech, Katsusaburou nearly spat out the beer that he just drunk from his glass. He barely managed to keep it down in the end.

Composing himself and feigning ignorance, Ikeda continued to sip his beer.

This guy, just what in the world is he talking about?

"So nice~! Must be nice~! How come you're the one who gets all affectionate with a girl while I get all the bad luck in mixers? Plus she's a high school girl! I'm so jealous! !"

"Haha, Toukichirou, you're not popular because you say things like that."

"That's right! But if Nouhime comforts me, I'll be a-ok~!"

"Hahaha! I refuse."

Just as Toukichirou snuggled up to Nouhime, she immediately cut him down. He's surprisingly persistent as well.

"Uuuu… But still I'm super jealous! ! Girls only see me as a nice guy…! I just want a cute girlfriend already!"

Glancing at the bawling Toukichirou from the corner of his eye, Ikeda continued to feign ignorance.

It's true that he and Kasane have been keeping close contact lately. But it's not like he goes out to personally meet her. Rather, they happen to meet each other every morning when they check up on the cat.

Something like that. It really isn't something that big to make a fuss about here. Especially when his old acquaintances Nobunaga and Nouhime were right next to him. Now that this topic is out in the open, he doesn't know how much they'll tease him tonight.

Cursing Toukichirou in his head, Ikeda nervously checked Nouhime's and Nobunaga's expression as cold sweat ran down his face.

"If you know a high school girl, then introduce me to her! Introduce me! It'll just give a good memory! Tono!"

(…Tono?)

So the one Toukichirou was talking to wasn't him, but Nobunaga. Ikeda widened his eyes at this unexpected development.

"…Shut up. It's not like I'm doing something ridiculous as your absurd imagination."

"But I'm still envious of you~! I wanna get close to a cute high school girl~! !" Nobunaga pushed the noisy Toukichirou off of him. Nouhime curiously turned her gaze toward Nobunaga.

"What? Nobunaga, you're going out with a high school girl?"

"…We're not going out. We just happened to meet due to a certain incident."

"But this is the first time I've seen you initiating contact with a girl."

* * *

It's true. Nobunaga's love life was frankly, very simple. He did date with many woman before, but always broke up with them quickly. If you would ask the reason why… One, they would constantly call him. Two, they would instantly complain if he didn't reply to their texts. Three, they persistently bugging him so that they could meet up later. Four, they were just plain troublesome.

He couldn't find an appropriate woman that harmonized well with him. Plus, the ever so frank Nobunaga found the restraint that the women had on him to be very annoying.

That's why he tried dating girls who didn't require such troublesome attention because he believed women were just satisfied with connecting with the man they love.

However when he couldn't meet up with them because of work, they would immediately complain and accuse him of putting work over them. They would go red with rage, as if it's obvious to prioritize themselves first into his life.

And that's basically how he dated his former girlfriends.

He paid little attention to them and often neglected them.

He never contacted them, never tried to meet up with them, and never sent them a single text message. At most, he would never communicate with them for a whole month. In other words, he treated all of them horribly.

Even when countless voice mails pile up, he deletes all of them with ease and the cycle continues once more.

You may call him 'the most detestable man in the world'.

Nobunaga never invited his girlfriends to his home because of his deep-seated aversion towards them. Without exception, he never once brought any of those girls to his home, no matter how much they begged him.

In fact Nobunaga rarely brings guests over to his current home. Those he occasionally invited were his old friends (the three idiots), the monkey, his foster brother (Ikeda), and (one of the very few women that he's friendly with) Nouhime.

But even the number of times they, the members, visited his home could be counted on one hand.

Nobunaga hated inviting people over. Much to the point where he avoided the matter altogether. Unless if it's someone he knew really well, he will never open the front door of his house.

That's how thorough his policy was.

So, even though he's 'dating', it's absolutely absurd to him to invite a woman, whom he barely knows anything about, to his abode.

And they, his former girlfriends, somehow put up with it.

Which usually meant, by continually getting furious or crying their eyes out or moving on to another man.

His third girlfriend was the easiest type to handle. She didn't ever try to contact him and their relationship just naturally came to an end.

Then there's the type of women who readily get furious at him until their relationship crashes. And next there's the clingy and whiny type of girls. He found those to be the most troublesome of the lot, yep they were absolutely troublesome.

Especially when they were the ones that never wanted to break up with him.

He never knew why they were so attached to him, for he too thought of himself as a horrible man.

That's why they should move on to the next man. If they were with another man, that person would surely take care of them.

He always coldly push them away, telling them to look for someone else. Many times he bluntly told them that he couldn't tolerate their annoying behavior.

Nobunaga knew well enough that he's a despicable human. But he firmly believed it's worse to continue a loveless relationship than to leave things be.

They would still cling onto him, but they would eventually give up and never contact him again.

That's fine. It was impossible for them to be with someone as terrible as him. There are many others who would treasure them, who would dearly love them, who would give them happiness.

The longest one lasted for two months.

Truthfully after that exhausting breakup, Nobunaga decided to stop dating altogether. He still counts himself fortunate for not being sexually frustrated.

In the first place, Nobunaga isn't very sociable. Things like dating is not suitable for him.

Date for a period of time and break up, date and separate. Repeating that cycle over and over and over again finally allowed him to realize that he, clearly, wasn't suited for this. As a result, he now always, out of goodwill, rejected the advances of women.

Nobunaga often thought of what he got out of this experience, why he couldn't love those women. He tried doing what other ordinary couples did, but could not bring himself to love them. Maybe he's the one who's just out of place.

In other words, he gave up.

He couldn't understand why women love him.

He didn't even know what it exactly means to be in love or to have affection towards someone.

Incomprehensible things always made him unpleasant.

Things like marriage and future successors… well they could be compromised later. When the time comes, he'll deal with it.

It's easier to be single, than to waste time with something unfathomable.

He had no need creating a partner for himself, he had no problem being alone.

* * *

"So you fell for a high school student?"

"…"

Nouhime cheekily smirked while Nobunaga's eyes flew open in surprise.

"…It's not like that. I just happened to come across an unusual cat."

"Cat?"

At the word 'cat', Ikeda unconsciously jumped. For a second, the image of that girl popped into his mind, but he soon smiled with self-mockery.

Just what were the chances it was her out of the hundreds, no thousands of high school girls in this city alone?

"So is she a beauty? Or is she super cute!?" Instantly curious at the current topic, Toukichirou excitedly bugged Nobunaga.

"…Dunno."

"You always say that! If she interests you that much, then she must be super attractive! You're so lucky. I wanna get get to know her too~. If you happen to lose interest, why don't ya try to introduce me to her~?" he wiggled around, attempting to flatter Nobunaga, but the latter pulled off a disgusted face and promptly shooed Toukichirou away from him.

* * *

He was interested in Kasane.

He was fond of her pleasant smile and her friendly demeanor.

However Nobunaga still didn't understand anything about love.

He was interested, he was definitely interested in Kasane.

Since that day, he's been in touch with her.

What did he want to do with her?

He still did not know

**TBC**

* * *

Whew, this was a long one for me! I hoped everyone enjoyed this chapter. I will try to post two new chapters tomorrow, if possible. That's all, have a nice day!


	8. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II Part 3

Disclaimer: All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. Here's chapter 8. Enjoy!

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II

Part Three

* * *

"Alright everyone~ times up!"

"Kasane-san, why don't we go and eat parfaits today?"

"Let's go, let's go~"

Kasane happily accepted Sayo's offer.

Kasane was usually busy with her part-time job and kendo club actives, but today was the last day of exams so she could go home early. Her job and club actives were all temporarily put off until the exams were over.

Sweets were the best thing for someone who studied hard all week after all.

"Which one should I get~," she happily chattered with Sayo until…

"Ah," Sayo turned her attention toward the school gates. Kasane followed her friend's gaze.

For some reason, there was a huge commotion in that area. The two girls looked at each other, wondering what was going on, and curiously came closer to the gates. A number of girls were surrounding something.

"That guy's car is so cool, right!?"

"Who's he waiting for?"

Just as Sayo and Kasane passed by, they overheard the other girls chattering amongst themselves and highly praising someone in high-pitched shrills and excited voices.

Taking a short glimpse of the person out of the corner of her eye, Kasane saw the girls surrounding a lone man in a suit.

"It must be someone's father or brother," Kasane thought before stopping herself from staring at the man. It's rude to gawk at someone you haven't met before after all. She and Sayo slowly moved their way through the crowd and exited the school, ready to go to the parfait shop.

"Oi."

"Kya!"

Kasane cried in surprise when someone unexpectedly grabbed her arm. Frantically turning around, she found herself facing a handsome and familiar feature of a certain someone.

"Ah, huh? …Tono-sama!?"

"…"

It was the doctor who took care of her when she was hospitalized just a while before.

"Why are you here?" Kasane asked, looking very puzzled. Nobunaga irritatedly glared down at her.

"You haven't checked your phone, have you?"

"Ah."

Now that she thought about it, because of the exams, she hasn't touched her phone for a whole week. She told all her friends to call her house phone if they needed something, so she thought everything was fine.

It wasn't like she was dependent on her cell phone in the first place. However, she didn't want any unnecessary distractions when studying for the exams. That's why for weeks like these, she never touched her phone.

"I'm sorry… I was busy with exams…. Is there something you need?" scared to meet his frightening gaze, Kasane nervously apologized. She didn't know what he wanted from her.

"…Medical examination. Don't tell me you've forgotten."

"Ah, now that you've said it, I kinda remember something like that…"

Nobunaga became more irritated when Kasane suddenly remembered their appointment.

"You…I just texted you that your appointment is today…! ! !"

"Hiiiiiii! I-I'm sorrryyyyyy! ! !" Kasane cried, apologizing as Nobunaga tightly grasped her head.

"Um…" Perplexed, Sayo glanced at her friend and the stranger.

"…Sorry, I'll be borrowing this."

"Eh… Seriously?"

"Eh, um…" Ignoring Sayo's restrained words, Nobunaga gripped Kasane's collar and pulled her away. After forcing her into his car, he slammed the door before climbing into the car himself. Sayo wondered if she could call this an abduction.

But this was Kasane's acquaintance and Kasane didn't look that reluctant when she was pulled away. So it's probably fine, right?

"Sayo-san, I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay, see you tomorrow, Kasane-san."

Seeing her friend wave behind the window, Sayo returned the gesture.

**TBC**

* * *

Alright, I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. I'll be uploading the next chapter as soon as possible. Just two more chapters and this arc will be finished!


	9. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II Part 4

Disclaimer: Hello, everyone I'm back. Whew, I really need to get a beta... English is defiantly not my best subject, I'm more of a math person. Ahem, all credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. For those who may have forgotten, you may go to my profile to redirect to フクロウ's website where she posts all of her Sengoku Strays stories (just in case if some of you want to read the original). Anyway here's the second to last chapter of this arc! Enjoy!

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II

Part Four

* * *

"Um, are we going to the hospital?" Kasane asked.

"…"

At those words, Nobunaga failed to provide an answer.

Today was his day off, so he was hesitant of bringing Kasane over to his workplace. Besides, Kasane's 'medical examination' was more of 'personal examination' on his end. Even Nobunaga was reluctant to use a public place like the hospital for his own private interests.

"…"

But even so, he couldn't think of a private area where he could conduct a medical examination.

There are places like manga cafes and karaokes that have private rooms, but he couldn't think of a particular location where they wouldn't be spotted by a surveillance camera.

"…"

"…?"

He stole a glance at Kasane from the corner of his eye. She was still looking at him with huge, curious eyes.

"…We're doing the examination at my place."

"…"

In a small voice, he told her.

No, he unconsciously blurted out those words.

There was nothing he had to be ashamed about; that itself was true.

He sure wasn't bringing Kasane over to his house for any evil or twisted reason.

However, even as a joke, bringing a young girl like Kasane over to a man's house all by herself is a bit…

If she were to sensibly think it over, she'll surely find it to be very strange and would become suspicious.

"Ah, I see. Is your house nearby?"

"…"

He was well prepared for Kasane to be reluctant, but he sure wasn't expecting this absentminded reaction. She's fine with it? She doesn't think it's strange or something? He just told she's going to his house, a guy's house!

But then again, Kasane probably doesn't know that he lives by himself. She must had assumed that he's still living with his family or close relatives.

"…Just to let you know, I live alone."

"…? So?" she tilted her head in confusion. At her strange reaction, Nobunaga felt a splitting headache pound against his head. A foreign emotion of resentment simmered inside of him.

What the hell. Is she an idiot? Shouldn't she be a lot more shrewd here? People are usually hesitant, they usually refuse to go a man's house. Especially when they're practically strangers. What, is this implying that she sees him as a woman?

…Or is it that… an indirect consent?

…No, she wasn't a type that would think something that profoundly.

He sharply exhaled.

Well it's not like he had any ulterior motives. Besides this was way better than having the girl flirt with him or to have her feel uncomfortable around him.

"…My house is around the corner."

"Okay~"

Carefully observing Kasane from the corner of his eye, he sullenly continued to drive.

* * *

"Uwaaaaa…." Kasane looked up at the multistoried condominium in amazement.

"Stop standing around like that, let's go."

"Ah, yes!"

For Kasane it was probably just a reputable large condo. At the entrance of the building there's even a mechanism that automatically locks the front door. Such a magnificent looking building.

How many stories did it have? It had to be at least 20 stories tall! Regardless of how tall this soaring condominium was, this was apparently where Nobunaga lived.

After presenting his authentication to the machine, the glass doors softly opened. The pair entered the nearby elevator where it took them up near the top of the building.

"You live in a really nice place, huh…" Kasane said.

"Not really… It just happened to qualify all my conditions."

"Qualify?"

"It had to be in the city and close to my workplace. The layout of the condo was good and the security system here is perfect. So I just decided to live here."

"I see…"

This guy probably never has to worry about the rent huh…. Kasane gave a strained smile as she thought about his unbelievable sense of values.

"It's on this floor," Nobunaga stated as the elevator halted. He promptly walked into the hallway. Just as Kasane began following after him, he was already as opening his door.

"S-sorry for intruding-."

"…"

"Eh, is there something wrong?"

"…No, it's nothing. Get in."

Without another word, he unknitted his brows and allowed her in his home. As she passed through the doorway, Kasane curiously looked around her surroundings.

* * *

He hated inviting people over to his home.

But why wasn't he reluctant with her?

And why did he allow her into his home so easily, without any resistance on his part?

…Such a strange woman.

Continuing into his condo, Kasane entered the living room.

"Uwaaaaa… Isn't this place too big for one person? Also-, uwa! Your kitchen is so pretty! It's so nice," she circled around the room, deeply engrossed to his home. "But you don't have a lot of things here, huh. It's like you only need minimal things and nothing else. Somehow it shows how cool Tono-sama is~." Still glancing about the room, she softly chuckled. He raised an eyebrow at that last comment.

"Enough with that, let's start your examination."

"Ah, okay."

He initially thought of doing the examination in his bedroom, but then decided against it. Even if he held no indecent intentions, that was undoubtedly crossing the line.

She probably won't object to the sofa in the living room, so he urged her to sit down.

"Come on, lift up your shirt."

Following his orders, Kasane obediently tucked up her shirt.

She's such an imprudent woman.

He wondered if she was always this defenseless with other men.

That was certainly none of his business, but it felt unpleasant to think about it.

Calming himself down, he slowly exhaled and sat next to her. With a stethoscope, he listened to her heart, then checked for any irregularities in her pulse. He finished the check up with the examination of her tongue and throat.

"…Hmph, well, there's no abnormalities."

"T-thank you very much," she readjusted her uniform and bowed.

"…You, haven't eaten lunch right?"

"Eh, ah… No, not yet."

Since today was the last day of exams, Kasane had originally planned to eat lunch at home. Now that she thinks about it, she was quite hungry.

"Then let's go out. I'll treat you."

"Eh! Really!?"

Her eyes sparkled at his offer.

She's so easy to bribe, he thought. And with a wry smile, he roughly ruffled her head.

**TBC**

* * *

I'll post the last chapter of this arc tomorrow... or maybe even tonight... Hmm... no probably tomorrow afternoon. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and have a good evening!


	10. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II Part 5

Disclaimer: Whew, last chapter of this arc! Yay! Ahem, all credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. I just hope my lousy translations are good enough to keep everyone entertained. Well, then I hope everyone enjoys this chapter.

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat II

Part Five

* * *

"Well, there's no abnormalities."

"Thank you very much."

Just as Kasane's checkup ended, Nobunaga routinely placed his stethoscope away.

As usual he would bring her over to his condo and begin his examination in the living room's sofa.

It's not like they met everyday. He was busy with work and Kasane was occupied by her part-time job and club activities.

That's why they only meet during the mornings of their respective day offs.

And afterwards, they would always eat lunch together.

It wasn't like he was on a date with Kasane, but it felt different than a friendly outing.

Nevertheless, their odd relationship continued.

"Let's go." Nobunaga shrugged on a jacket and slipped his wallet and car keys into his pocket. However, Kasane stood up in protest.

"It's okay, I'm fine! You keep on treating me out for lunch! I feel bad!" she shook her head, flustered.

The first-second times she merrily accepted his offer.

However again and again, he would treat her to lunch at different eateries and restaurants after her examination as if it were a normal occurrence for him. Kasane wasn't a type to turn down offers, but even she, especially in these sorts of situations, felt reluctant to accept his offer every time.

"I'm fine with it. I also just happened to be hungry that's all."

"B-but still… Ow-!"

"I don't live on a low income. Besides, I have no problem with this so just let me treat you lunch already."

"Owowowow! Ouch! It hurts, it hurts Tono-samaaa!"

He tightly clenched her head. Kasane, in tears, frantically sought to calm him down.

"Then shall we go?"

"Uuu…No! I still think… Owowowowowowow! !"

In response, Nobunaga only increased his tight hold on her.

"T-that's why, um… Instead, I-I'll cook for you… ! !"

"…"

Hearing her unexpected offer, Nobunaga stared down at Kasane in wonderment.

"Um, well. You give me free check ups and also treated me lunch a bunch of times so I thought it'll be nice if I could clean your condo or... cook for you… Something like that-…"

"…"

"…I'm sorry, never mind forget it."

With no response from Nobunaga, she quickly diverted her attention away from his gaze.

"…Fine. Do whatever you want."

"Uwe?"

Nobunaga walked back and slumped into the sofa. Dumbfounded, Kasane looked back at him.

"What."

"Oh, um… Is it okay?"

"You're taking back what you offered? Such an indecisive fellow aren't you?"

"No, it's just that… when I clean I might accidentally touch your personal belongings…. and I can't picture you eating home cooked foods at all…"

In that moment, he felt his eyes grow wide.

Now that she said it, this is the first time he remembered.

Having his personal belongings touched by someone else… Having a woman pretend to be his wife and cook meals for him…

Those were the things he hated the most in the world, to the point where he wished he were dead.

"…Not really. If I didn't like it I wouldn't have told you to 'do whatever you want'."

"Ha…" Puzzled, Kasane scratched her head.

"Ah! Then I better start cooking the rice! What should the side dishes be~" She then cheerfully hurried over to the kitchen. Truthfully, she was actually happy to finally use that nice kitchen. Merrily making her way to the fridge, she opened it. Then promptly closed it, and opened it again.

"Tono-sama…. Your fridge only has water….."

"Of course. I fundamentally don't eat at home."

"Eh," she turned to him in astonishment. "Then everyday you eat out!?"

"…Well that's what I generally do. Of course there are times when I don't eat anything at all."

"You don't cook!?"

"Why should I?"

He snorted and turned away. Kasane gave a bewildered sigh.

"…No wonder the kitchen and all the appliances were so clean…"

Before she thought he rarely used the pots, pans, and knives, but it turns out they weren't used at all. The evidence could be seen in the clean state of those appliances.

Even though he bought them, he never used it. Such a waste… Kasane thought to herself until she spotted a pile of white clothing.

"Isn't this all the clothes you just got back from the cleaners…?"

"Yeah, doing the laundry is too troublesome for me. After I wear it, I send it back to the cleaners."

"Ehhhhhh! That's so uneconomical! !" Kasane shouted. From the bottom of her heart she was severely shocked at his remark. To think he'll send his clothes to the cleaners instead of doing the laundry himself… he's so wasteful. Kasane never grew in a wealthy household, so Nobunaga's behavior only appalled her.

She wasn't a frugal or stingy person, but people ordinarily wouldn't do those kinds of things.

"If you have laundry just put it in the laundry machine and hang it up to dry…!"

"Still too troublesome."

"…"

She hurried over to his bathroom and lo and behold she found a laundry machine that looked as if no one touched it since its installation. You might as call it a piece of furniture now. Kasane exasperatedly sighed and walked back to the living room.

"Geez… It can't be helped. I'll do the laundry and cook something for you." She said with an incredulous look on her face. Nobunaga returned the gaze.

"Don't you think it's troublesome?"

"Not really. I always do it at home anyway so I'm used to it. I'm fine with it… Geez! People like you, who's not self-sufficient, should go find yourself a wife!" she puffed her cheeks in annoyance as she head towards the door.

"Where are you going?"

"I'm going out to buy some groceries since there's nothing in your refrigerator."

"…You're getting my food, at least let me go with you," Nobunaga said as he stood up from the sofa. He walked towards Kasane and patted her head.

* * *

"Ehehe~. It's not much but, dig in."

After buying all the ingredients and cooking the meal, 'lunch-time' had already long passed so Kasane only cooked a simple omelet rice with salad as a side dish.

Nobunaga dully commented, "Well at least it looks edible." But he soon gulped it down and asked for seconds so Kasane assumed he liked it.

Before returning to his place, they stopped by a a video shop and rented an action movie, which was now playing on the screen as they ate lunch.

After cleaning up the room (though it was already clean to begin with) Kasane and, a very sullen, Nobunaga did the laundry and hanged it out on the veranda to dry.

"We got a lot of ingredients today, so you'll be fine when I come over next time," Kasane triumphantly grinned. Nobunaga silently gazed back at her.

Since she thought it was necessary, she also bought an apron. With her hair up and a cute apron over her school uniform, the sight of her was… well…

Monkey often told him, "Aprons are definitely a man's romance!" before. But he thought of it as ridiculous, finding no sense in that monkey's delusional idea. Now he stand corrected. Indeed this was, how can you explain it? …It sort of gets to you.

"What are you doing."

"You're just going to eat out again, aren't you Tono-sama? You know this sort of diet isn't good for you, right? That's why right now I'm making you dinner so you could heat it up later!"

"Hmph… What are you making?"

Kasane naturally moved around the kitchen. It was as if this wasn't the first time she worked around in this environment.

Looking down, he saw her drop something into a pot of boiling oil, deep frying it.

"U-m. I was thinking of making curry with a lot of vegetables and… some croquettes- …Ah!"

Staring at the bite-sized, freshly fried croquette that Kasane placed the kitchen paper, Nobunaga couldn't help but think how good it looked. Sneakily stealing it under her nose, he quickly chomped it down.

It was hot… but delicious.

"Geez~! If you eat it all now, you won't be able to eat anything tonight!"

Nobunaga involuntarily laughed at her miffed reaction.

This is the first time he ever had this feeling.

**TBC**

* * *

Whew, the second arc is done! Hopefully I'll be able to translate the third arc before I go back to college... Hopefully. Ah FYI, I'm writing this AU in chronological order. Just to make that clear... フクロウ's first 'arc' on this AU is actually 唯一無二(One And Only) but she then expanded this story later on. Now that she 'finished' the story (I'm not sure if she's going to write more of this AU or not), I just decided to just to write everything in order. If she happens to write more about this AU, I'll just include it in later. Sorry for the useless commentary, I just wanted you all to know this. Well then, I'll now work on some drabbles for Owari's Stray before returning back for the third arc. Having a nice day!


	11. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III Part 1

Disclaimer: Hello again. All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. I am merely a translator. Maybe one day I would write my own stories, but eh... I'm going to concentrate on translating フクロウ's works. Well then, here's the third arc of 10 Strays. Enjoy!

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III

Part One

* * *

"Yo, pedophile!"

Nouhime unreservedly greeted her friend. Nobunaga only crinkled his brow.

"Don't say such scandalous things to people like that!"

Hearing the word 'pedophile' a number of customers and employees turned their heads towards him.

Under his malicious expression, Nouhime apologized, "My bad, my bad." and took a seat next to him.

* * *

"So, how's it going? You know, with that high school girl."

He wondered why women were such curious creatures that had to snoop around for gossip.

Nouhime only gave him a persistent grin and sipped her _sake. _Ever since she learned of the girl, she had been awfully curious about their relationship and often asked him when they went out drinking.

It's been one year since he started a strange relationship with Kasane.

As of right now, they weren't lovers.

If you had to describe their relationship… they were like friends.

Now Kasane would show up to his door, cook for him, and do little things like cleaning his condo or hanging up the laundry….

Actually it was more like she became his commuting wife.

However, Kasane had drawn a clear line in their relationship.

She probably only thinks of him as "a helpless older brother".

He doesn't know how long this relationship would last, but he had no intentions of ending it.

"Hey, Nobunaga."

"What."

"Can I stay over at your place tonight?"

"…Again?"

Nouhime clasped her hands together, "Please!"

He had known Nouhime since they were little kids, in other words, she is his childhood friend. And they both stayed that way.

He didn't hate Nouhime.

If anything, she was one of the few people he liked.

However since they were raised like family, they both only saw each other as siblings.

Nouhime's home was also located on the outskirts of town.

She didn't have a driver's license and had to rely on public transportations like buses and trains.

Nouhime worked at his family's hospital.

Though he works at a different hospital, he has a place near her workplace. Which is why he sometimes lets Nouhime to stay over at his condo when she can't go back home.

"…It's already midnight…"

The last train of the day had already left and the taxis that come to the bar are already congested with customers who just left the building.

"…You should stop demanding things from me."

"Sorry, sorry. It's an old habit of mine."

Nobunaga exasperatedly sighed and accepted her request.

If the last train didn't leave, he would have immediately sent her off on her own… but he grudgingly accepted her pitiful request. It was the least he can do as an old acquaintance.

**TBC**

* * *

Whew! We're now into the major drama of the series. Hopefully I could post the next chapter by tonight. Until then, I hope you all have a nice day.


	12. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III Part 2

Disclaimer: Hello. All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. I am just a translator who got permission to upload フクロウ's stories on this website. Now then, let's start begin this chapter.

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III

Part Two

* * *

"Oi, wake up. You're going to be late."

Nouhime, who was contently sprawled across his bed, slept on. Nobunaga roughly shook her shoulder.

She was only wearing his shirt.

If some other guy other than him were here, they would probably attack her in right there.

However, he felt nothing at the sight since Nouhime was like a little sister to him.

For him she was, more specifically, both a good friend and an annoying little sister.

He intended to dump her on the living room sofa, but this imprudent woman just took one of his new business shirts as her pajama and jumped into his bed without consulting him.

Of course he was annoyed at her for doing all that, but it was already 1 AM in the morning.

If she's dead asleep, she'll never wake up.

And so, without any choice, he slept on the sofa.

"It's morning already…?"

Nouhime yawned, stretching out of the bed. She clenched her head from the hangover.

Gazing at her, Nobunaga thought, "You reap what you sow." and cold-heartedly told her to get ready.

"After stealing my bed…"

"You mean you'll let a girl like me sleep on the floor!?"

"I don't even see you as a girl."

To which she cried, "What'd ya say!?" and glared at him. Nobunaga let out a loose laugh and tossed her some medicine for her hangover.

"Take it. After you do that, hurry up and get dressed. We don't have much time to spare."

He left the room. Nouhime glanced at the clock. It was 8 AM already. She hurriedly got dressed and left the house with him.

"Uuug, I drank too much last night. I shouldn't have done that since I have work to do today…"

"You didn't forget anything?"

"Ah, sorry about this. I'll treat you dinner next time we see each other."

"Then let's go to that expensive restaurant, I'll bring the other guys as well. You can have the bill."

"…You're really an evil guy."

They bantered as they left his condo. Nobunaga locked the door.

"I just happen to drive by your workplace, so I'll drop you off before I go to work. Come on."

It was always customary of him to drop her off to her work after she stayed over.

So as usual, she hopped into the front seat of his car and swallowed the medicine.

* * *

"…Tono-sama?"

Today she had no school, so Kasane came to Nobunaga's condominium.

On these sort of days, she would come over to cook him breakfast before he goes to work, so she usually arrive at this time.

Just as she approached the building, she saw Nobunaga pull out from the parking lot with a unknown, but beautiful woman sitting next to him.

"…"

Without calling out to him, she looked dumfounded at the scene. And so, the pair left without noticing her.

Dazed, she blankly stared off into space for some time before mechanically entering the building. She came to do the housework after all.

After using the elevator, she walked over to his room. Using the duplicate key that Nobunaga gave her before, she opened the door and entered the familiar room.

"I should clean his room first…" she thought as she entered his bedroom.

Before her was a messy, unkept bed.

That's strange. Nobunaga always aligned the sheets before he leaves for work.

Shrugging it off, she gathered the sheets before discovering something. A long strand of hair that was definitely not Nobunaga's. Kasane's body stiffened at the discovery.

A long, thin beautiful strand of black hair.

Its texture was vastly different than Nobunaga's unruly hair.

She recalled the beautiful woman that was with Nobunaga.

That time she unconsciously tried not to think of it, but now she realized…

(…Last night, Tono-sama's girlfriend stayed over…)

The two of them intimately leaving the mansion, the messy bed, the hair.

With all the pieces of the puzzle laid out for her, it was obvious that woman slept in this bed.

"…"

What was this feeling?

More importantly, how come she didn't think of this before?

Tono-sama is an adult, he's really cool, and a great doctor. Of course he would have a girlfriend.

In fact, it would be strange if he didn't have one.

There was nothing wrong with that.

She didn't know he had a girlfriend and he just happened to let his girlfriend stay over for the night.

So why was she feeling…

She didn't want to believe it. However, now… now that she realized it, she had no other choice but to accept it.

As she desperately tried to think of something else, another thought came to her mind.

(…Even when he has a girlfriend, I intrude his house and do all the housework… Then aren't I a huge nuisance to him?)

Th-that's right.

Even when he has a girlfriend, she, a small girl, was the one assisting him…

Not only that she always meets him during the weekends, so she must had disturbed their time together.

Though Tono-sama doesn't say anything to her, she must think of her as annoying.

More specifically, his girlfriend would find her a disturbance in their relationship.

If she ever got a boyfriend, she would, of course, want to frequently visit him, to see him and hear his voice. If she ever found out an unknown woman was commuting to her boyfriend's home and doing his laundry, she would feel unpleasant.

"…I am such an idiot…"

Nobunaga has a girlfriend. Now what should she do?

…That's obvious.

**TBC**

* * *

Whew, I didn't think I would be finished two chapters in one day! I hoped you all enjoyed this chapter and have a nice day!


	13. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III Part 3

Disclaimer: Whew three more chapters before this arc ends. Ahem, all credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. I'm just a translator who hope that everyone has a good time reading フクロウ's stories... even though my translations are not that good. Here's chapter 13, enjoy!

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III

Part 3

* * *

"…"

"Uwa."

Toukichirou, who just arrived at the bar, jumped back as he spotted the ill-tempered Nobunaga. Just as he curiously looked at Ikeda and the others, they all heaved a huge sigh.

"…What's wrong, Tono… You're in a really bad mood today…" he nervously called out to Nobunaga.

Piercing the poor man with a deadly glare, Toukichirou felt his lifespan cut short.

Scary, this guy's super scary.

The members all, of course, encountered an ill-tempered Nobunaga a number of times, but this had to be the worst they've ever seen. This wasn't something they could easily ask, "What's wrong?" to him.

"…Lately."

"Yes?"

"Lately, that girl doesn't come over to my place."

"…"

'That girl'. All the members all knew her as the high school girl Nobunaga is aquatinted with.

"…M-maybe she's busy. Like with tests and stuff."

"Do you think there's schools that give out tests continually for a whole month?"

In a restrained voice, Nobunaga gave him a pointed look.

"She also doesn't return my texts and she doesn't pick up her phone."

His voice became more and more edgy.

At that, Toukichirou, who knew understand women's actions due to his past experiences, became to sweat.

…This is… Doesn't this mean that high school girl got herself a boyfriend?

From what he heard from Nobunaga, he knew that she was a sweet natured girl.

Plus schools were a place where girls and boys of the same age could meet. Of course there would be those sorts of encounters.

Because she didn't have a boyfriend before, she regularly visited Nobunaga. But now that she made a boyfriend, she would undoubtedly prioritize her boyfriend over a brother-like acquaintance.

Or maybe she already had a boyfriend and since she's so friendly to others, he probably told her something like, "It's weird to go to that guy's place!" and stopped her from communicating with Nobunaga...

That must be it. It's definitely weird for a girl to go over to a guy's place, especially when they're not lovers.

Nobunaga treated her out for meals, bought stuff for her, did free medical examinations for her, and even got compensation from that girl in return… If her boyfriend found out she was assisting a guy like Nobunaga, he wouldn't like it.

"…Could it be that she has a boyfriend now?" Nouhime murmured. The atmosphere immediately became dark.

"That girl would meet up with you even when she's busy with schoolwork and her part-time job, right? For her to suddenly cut off all contact… Don't you think she found a boyfriend at her school?"

"Nouhime-san! That's too blunt!"

Just before Toukichirou could sugar-coat the unpleasant fact, Nouhime realized the circumstances and beat him to the punch.

"…A boyfriend?"

"Yeah. You told us that she's a really sweet and cute girl. In fact it's totally strange that she never got a boyfriend until now. I mean, a high school is the perfect place for such encounters. It's not unusual if she falls for a cool guy that's around her age."

"That flat-chested girl, got a boyfriend? Don't be ridiculous! !"

"Ridiculous? Can't you read the signs? She doesn't return your texts. She doesn't pick up the phone. She doesn't try to meet you. Without a doubt she's avoiding you!"

* * *

"—….!"

He snapped his mouth shut.

Nobunaga isn't dense.

Even without Nouhime's words, he already realized it.

Yet, he dared not think of it.

…He didn't want to think about it.

If he acknowledges to it, he'll never be able to see her again.

"…Tono, yearned for the girl that much?"

He faintly heard Katsusaburou murmur.

Yearn?

…Him, yearning?

That very young, noisy, strong-minded… that overly good-natured girl?

Now that Ikeda said it, he finally realized it.

He with that girl?

Nobunaga felt a smile creep across his face. A self-mocking smile.

…So, so what can he do about it now?

"…Nobunaga-sama, you probably didn't have this sort of experience before, but I'm sure you'll forget everything! You'll be fine—"

Toukichirou tried to cheer up the sullen man.

…Forget?

That voice?

That warmth?

That smiling face?

…Could he, forget all that?

**TBC**

* * *

Well, then I better start on the last three chapters before I leave for college. Who knows how much free time I would have when classes start?


	14. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III Part 4

Disclaimer: Whew, sorry I'm late! All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. Without further ado, let's start begin this chapter, shall we?

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III

Part Four

* * *

"Kasane, it's nice that you lately have time to go out with us, but you don't look too good."

"…Is that so?"

Class was finished for the day and just as she packed up for home, her friends called out to her. She hasn't gone over to Nobunaga's home for a while now. She doesn't call him back nor does she try to send him any responses to his texts.

Most of his messages were complaints of her not answering the phone, but there were also texts about her next medical examination.

…Even though he has a girlfriend. He should spend time with his lover than someone like her.

Even though he's a cross-grained man who needs to be taken care of, he still goes to her.

Sure, she did suddenly stopped all communication with him. She can see why Nobunaga is complaining.

(But, isn't this for the best?)

Nobunaga has a lover. She shouldn't meddle into the life of a man who is in a relationship.

She's probably only a burden. After all, he used all the time that could be spent with his girlfriend on her.

Yet, Kasane knew she couldn't continue to ignore his messages.

He did a lot of things for her.

She had to properly meet him and thank him. She would have to tell him that she won't meet him anymore, that she won't be a bother to him anymore, that they should separate…

At that thought, Kasane felt her heart tighten.

…Not good. She shouldn't think about him.

What is he doing?

Is he at work right now?

Or is he at home?

….Is he with that beautiful woman?

She tried not to think about it, but the thoughts came one by one and engulfed her mind.

No. Even though she didn't want to think about him…

Just as she thought of her affection for him, it came to her.

(…I am in love with him.)

Ordinarily it's strange that she would take care of a man that's not even her boyfriend.

Especially when she doesn't have much time to spare.

Even so, even when she has less time for herself, even when she had to reduce the hours on those leisure days, she made time to go to his condominium.

Because Tono-sama was careless about food and housework?

Those were only excuses.

….She wanted to meet him.

She wanted to meet him, to hear his voice, to talk, to laugh, to have her hair ruffled… even just for a little while she wanted to be there with him.

Why didn't she realize this sooner?

Though, there was nothing she could do anyway.

She shouldn't had realized it.

She should had remained ignorant and exchanged farewells with him.

As tears welled up in her eyes, Kasane hurriedly packed up and left the classroom, all the while leaving her friends behind in shock.

* * *

Kasane passed by the familiar park.

That cat was no longer here. She had somehow convinced her grandfather to take care of it. Though her grandfather was reluctant to take the kitten in, he is now the one who gives it the most affection.

"…Kusanagi-san."

"Huh? Ikeda-san…?"

This was a purely coincidental meeting.

After the cat incident they had exchanged phone numbers, kept in touch, and time to time run into each other at this park.

He often messages her; asking about the kitten's condition.

To Kasane, Ikeda was like an older brother and a good friend, but for him she's probably just an acquaintance.

"This is pretty strange; meeting at a time like this."

"…Yes. Today I happened to finish work earlier than usual," Ikeda faintly smiled. "…Did something happen?

"Eh?"

"It's just that, you don't look like your energetic self."

Kasane bitterly smiled. Ikeda said the same thing as her friends. Of course her close friends at school could see if she's in a gloomy mood or not, but even Ikeda, whom she meets once in a while, noticed. Just how obvious was she?

"…Why don't we talk about it?"

He gently suggested. Kasane nodded.

* * *

"Here."

"T-thank you very much."

Kasane accepted the hot cocoa from Ikeda. He opened his can of coffee and took a seat next to her on the bench. Unlike the other times they've met, the park was desolate. Not one person was in sight.

Ikeda fancied Kasane.

Towards this young girl, he had affection for her.

It's something he could not fully explain.

However, Kasane always returned his boorish messages politely.

When he called her, she kept a lively conversation with him.

It's been one year since that encounter and he became attracted to her.

Kasane's smiling face, her voice, her character, her presence; he liked everything about her.

They would often exchange messages and talk on the phone and meet unexpectedly at different places. They never once planned to meet out.

She was always busy with her part-time job and her club activities and his schedule was packed with nightly shifts. They never had the chance to meet each other because of this.

…Also, he was scared that she'll realize his fancy for her and would avoid him afterwards.

…But.

He remembered Nobunaga.

After that conversation, that man carelessly ran out of the bar.

This girl was certainly a likable woman.

There certainly must be other guys who like her as well.

If she ever gets a boyfriend, she'll never look at him.

Isn't that right?

She would definitely pick a boy of her age who she'll regularly meet than a sullen and brusque old man like him. Ikeda crushed the empty coffee can in his grasp.

He would never be able to ask her out.

It wasn't like he was seeking out a girlfriend.

He just wanted to normally go out with her, just the two of them. He wanted to talk to her, to laugh with her, to send time with her.

And if possible, if she also returns his feelings then—

…He could see that she wasn't her cheerful self.

If wasn't appropriate of him to invite her for a date. It wasn't acceptable of him to ask things like, 'If you feel unwell, why won't you go out with me for a change?'

Ikeda was unaccustomed to these things.

Could he find a way to see her again? Would she shun him away?

Don't show her your ulterior motives. Just naturally ask her out.

Calm down.

Don't try to stutter or look troubled.

Naturally. Calmly. As if nothing is happening.

"…Did something happen?"

He asked in a surprisingly composed manner.

Kasane probably wouldn't know how much trouble he went through to say those words.

"…Eh, um…"

"Somehow, you're not your usual self, Kusanagi-san."

It's true.

This girl was always lively and always smiled; there was never a time when she was never bright or cheerful.

She wasn't a child who would normally look dejected like this.

What made her this way?

If there is a cause, he wanted to help her.

That itself was not a lie.

She always gave him a beaming smile.

He lost count on how many times her smiles healed and encouraged him.

For her to lose her smile, was an unforgivable event.

If someone or something made her this way, he wanted to get rid of it.

If he could help her… If he could get her to regain her smile...

Ikeda pushed all of his ulterior motives away, those aren't related to this. His only goal was to cheer her up.

"…"

In that moment Kasane appeared to be greatly troubled, but then she looked straight at him and wryly smiled.

"…I didn't tell anyone else, but…. if it's Ikeda-san then it might be okay to say it…"

At the disheartening sight of Kasane trying to smile, Ikeda felt his heart stop.

At the same time, he felt his blood boil at her words.

To think that she would freely consult to him her troubles instead of asking someone else.

Above all else, he felt really happy.

She's counting on him. She trusts him.

This was proof that he wasn't hated.

"Actually, I experienced a broken heart."

With all her might, she blurted out to him.

"…Broken heart?"

"Yes… I had someone I liked… But that suddenly person had a really beautiful lady with him…. Now that I think about it, I'm such an idiot. Of course he would have a girlfriend."

"…"

"Well! It's not like he returned my feelings anyway and they looked nice together… So I'm fine with it!"

He silently gazed at her.

She's also at that adolescent age. It's not strange that she would have feelings for someone else.

Broken heart. Isn't this the perfect chance for him?

If he took advantage of Kasane in her heartbroken state, wouldn't he be able to get closer to her?

Deep in his heart, he scolded himself for being a coward.

However, if he doesn't do it, she would find someone else. If love was to then bloom, he would once more be left forgotten.

"…"

He looked at her expression.

That forced smile, that pitiful smile.

She was always smiling. She never complained.

Her spirit was strong and she was hopelessly goodnatured. She knew nothing of corruption.

She was only a young girl whose cheerful smile suited her the most.

* * *

"…What kind of person was he?"

Ikeda quietly asked her. Kasane looked back at him with surprise, but then quickly answered back.

"…He is tall, and really handsome… He can be scary… but is still a nice person…."

That's right, in the beginning she found him frightening.

He was super strict and so scary when he was angry.

Yet, she was happy when he showed an occasional gentleness to her. She loved his smiling face the most.

"…What is his name?"

"Eh?"

"…His name?"

"…Um, his name is Oda Nobunaga…"

"…"

* * *

He shouldn't have asked.

…He should had said nothing and remained ignorant and.… and take advantage of this chance.

"…Are you sure he has a girlfriend?"

"Yes…"

"…Are you certain?"

"Eh?"

"Did you hear him say it?"

"But, that-, well… I saw them leaving from his condo! That's why… I can't think of anything else!"

"…"

Hearing that Ikeda thought, "Ahh, so that woman didn't catch the last train and stayed over with Tono again huh…"

And Kasane just happened to come at the wrong time. He heaved a heavy sigh.

"Kusanagi-san… Why don't talk to him, one last time? So you can confirm what you saw was true or not."

"Confirm…"

"Don't you think there's a possibility that the woman you saw wasn't his girlfriend?"

"…"

"…In other words, you should have a proper conversation with him… You should talk with him and confirm your suspicions. I believe it's best if you do that."

He chided her.

Bewildered, she gave him a small nod.

In corner of his mind he laughed with self-mockery.

(I'm such an idiot.)

**TBC**

* * *

Well then, I hoped everyone enjoyed this chapter! Poor Ikeda... someone... write a good IkedaxKasane fanfic... He needs his own happy ending. I don't know if I'll be able to upload another chapter tomorrow, so I'm sorry for those who eagerly await the next chapter. I hope everyone has a nice day!


	15. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III Part 5

Disclaimer: All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ, I'm sure everyone who has read this far knows this already. Well then, let's begin with the chapter.

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III

Part Five

* * *

"Doctor Oda, I brought in the necessary documents."

"…"

Nobunaga silently took the papers and turned his chair away from the nurse.

Sullenly sipping his cup of coffee, he nonchalantly looked over the documents.

Lately Surgical Department's Doctor Oda Nobunaga was in a rather foul mood.

Just before there were many days when he was in a really good mood and even hummed a small tune, but now everyone could only see his face scrunched up in irritation.

He did his work without any trouble, but the nurses around him fretted over his current state.

"W-well then, excuse me, Doctor Oda…"

"…"

Bowing her head, the nurse hurriedly left the room.

He didn't even attempt to turn his head at her exit.

* * *

"…As I thought, I can't accept this!"

He irritatedly sighed.

There was no way he could accept Kasane suddenly disappearing from him.

She got a boyfriend?

So what?

Even if she got a boyfriend, there was no reason to outright neglect him.

So she had to now stop texting him… calling him… meeting him?

As if he'll accept this!

No matter what the reason was, it was unacceptable for her to suddenly vanish on him.

Just as he stood up to leave, his cellphone, which he forgot to turn off, incidentally rang.

Reaching into his pocket, he took out his phone. And there on his screen was a message from the source of his irritation, Kasane.

_May I have a bit of your time tonight?_

This obviously meant that she wanted to meet him.

When's the last time he met her?

At the worst, probably over a month.

"…"

He quickly typed, "_If we meet after 8 PM then it's fine._"

She immediately responded.

_Then until you finish work, I'll be waiting at the nearby park._

And their conversation ended.

Nobunaga reseated himself back into his chair and leaned forward onto his desk.

What a surprise, he never knew she would be the one to contact him first. Especially before he decided to forcibly meet her.

However, it worked out that Kasane wanted to meet him out of her own free will. It was way than his original plan.

But why did she want to meet him now? What did she want to talk about?

Is she going to tell him directly; she doesn't want to see him anymore? That she's no longer going to contact him every again?

"…"

As if he'll concede to that. As if he'll accept that.

He was never attached to someone like this.

He never had one person occupy his thoughts this long.

There was never a time when he pathetically yearned someone like this while throwing all reason and thoughts on the viewpoint and condition of their position.

You may call him selfish.

He didn't care if he's called tyrannical.

As if he'll let Kasane go now.

* * *

"Tono-sama?"

Finishing up his work as soon as possible, Nobunaga hurriedly left to the designated park where Kasane was waiting. Even so, the sun had already set and the place was only lit from the lights of the lamps in the area.

"Thank you for your hard work, Tono-sama."

"…"

Confirming that the figure approaching her was him, Kasane gave him a smile.

Seeing her, hearing her voice, having her smile at him… It's been one month since he last seen Kasane.

Gazing upon the girl whom he didn't see for a whole month, Nobunaga felt an abnormal hot pain sear through his chest. Without thinking, he turned his face away.

Just how much did he crave for Kasane?

To what extent did he want to meet her?

Trying to hide his thoughts from her, he coughed.

This was no time to be sentimental.

If he messes up at this critical time, he would never be able to see her again.

"…What did you want to talk about?"

He better start with that first.

If he doesn't ask about the subject of the matter, this conversation wouldn't continue.

At a loss, Kasane averted her eyes.

"…Um, for all the trouble I cause…. I'm very sorry!"

She bowed her head towards him.

He dubiously gazed down at her apologetic form.

"Why are you apologizing?"

"I, without knowing anything…meddled your life…"

"Meddle? What do you mean by that!?"

"But, Tono-sama, you should had told me…. then I wouldn't have uninvitedly cause you all those problems…!"

"Like I said, what are you talking about!?"

Unable to comprehend what Kasane was saying, Nobunaga furrowed his forehead and yelled; completely forgetting that he was in the park.

"Doesn't Tono-sama have a girlfriend!?"

"…Ha!?"

With a 20 second stall, he raised his voice, dumbfounded at her remark.

"Y-you have such a lovely lady with you and I-I thought I was a burden to your relationship… Truthfully, you probably thought of me as a nuisance, didn't you? You should have told me, I didn't want to…"

"…Wait, wait, wait. What the hell are you talking about? I thought you were going to tell me what you were going to do."

As of now, he didn't have a girlfriend.

He couldn't understand why she would suddenly bring that up here.

Feeling pressure under his contemptuous glance, Kasane continued, "…But! I saw it! T-that morning, you and that really beautiful lady left your condo…!"

"…"

Condo, lady…

Going through those words, he finally fit the pieces together.

…This girl, could it be she's talking about Noh?

If he's right, then everything is coherent.

It's been one month since Kasane stopped coming over to his place.

It's also been one month since Noh stayed over.

Kasane doesn't know anything about Noh.

In fact, if Kasane saw them leaving his condo early in the morning, it wouldn't be strange for her to assume that man and woman, especially if they are of similar ages, were lovers.

…So that woman was the cause of all this!

Discovering all this, he planned for an hour long lecture of complaints to Nouhime when he meets her again.

Because of that woman, Kasane unluckily saw them and misunderstood everything and suddenly stopped meeting him for a whole month!

Though he was still planning of his list of complaints to Noh, Nobunaga knew he had to follow up to what Kasane said before.

If he doesn't solve this misunderstanding, she would really leave him for real.

"That's not my girlfriend. I don't even have one."

"Then who is she!?"

"Only a childhood friend!"

"So you do those kinds of things with your childhood friend!?"

"Why are you connecting this to that!? Of course we don't do that!"

No matter how much he tried to explain to Kasane, she couldn't understand anything.

Well, of course anyone would be like her in this situation, but he had no time for any of that.

"Liar! I found a strand of her hair on the bed and… Please, you no longer need to deceive me! I'm not angry at you!"

Kasane frantically said as she shook her fists up and down.

"…Because! I don't have the same kinds of feelings as Tono-sama…! ! Besides, I don't mind if you have a girlfriend! So, in order to to not become a nuisance to you, I decided to cut off our—"

"…And did you think I'll forgive you! ! ?"

"…! !"

He cut through her words.

She fro zed at his sharp tone.

"T-tono-sama?"

"You think I'll just forgive you just after one sentence! !?"

Having her easily cut ties with him made Nobunaga severely irritated.

Here he was, desperately reconnecting with Kasane, yet the girl did not corporate. To think that she tried not to get involved with him in that unconcerned behavior shocked him the most.

Even if he's overly self-conscious, he was certainly aware that Kasane didn't hate him.

However, his shock rooted from her wish to cut all ties with him.

"After smiling like that, suddenly coming close to me, on top of all that you kept my hopes up… You think that small exchange is acceptable! ! ?"

"H-hope… ! ! ?"

Kasane blushed. Puzzled, she glanced up at him.

"If you harbor such feelings, of course I'll feel anxious! !"

"An-anxious!?"

This time her whole face reddened.

He wasn't aware of it. Before Nobunaga didn't know how he felt when he saw her.

…But, now that she left him for a period of time, he finally understood.

"…That woman is only my childhood friend. Nothing more, nothing less. It's nothing like what you're thinking!"

It's the truth.

To him, Nouhime was like his little sister, as family and vice versa. They held no other affection for each other.

It was like that now and it will never change.

"…During this whole month without you, I was seriously irritated. When I couldn't see you, you were the only one in my mind… Like a little schoolgirl, I thought only about you and only you… Just what kind of responsibility are you going to take! ! ?"

"Re-responsibility!?"

This time she looked at him in shock.

She definitely didn't expect this.

But this was all her fault.

For him to be this attached to her… for him to be this sentimental…

This never happened to him before.

Look at him now. This, pathetic self.

He's showing such an immature and disgraceful behavior to her.

This is his first time.

He always had full control of himself; there was never had a time when he couldn't restrain himself.

"That's right! This sort of thing never happened to me before! It's all your fault, take responsibility!"

"Th-that's too irrational! Just how… do I take responsibility…?"

"…Become my woman!"

Kasane became troubled at his statement.

"….Whaaaaaaaaattt!?"

"Become my woman as compensation for making me this way!"

"Bu-but that's too unreasonable!"

On the verge of crying, Kasane yelled.

He knows that already. He knows he's unreasonable.

Yet, he doesn't know what else to say.

Just how he could he convey his feelings to her? He did not know.

"…! !"

On the spur of the moment he embraced Kasane.

Her small body stiffened under his grasp.

Nobunaga buried his face into her soft hair.

The warm sensation spread through his chest.

"…You don't want to?"

"Uwe?"

"You don't want to become my woman?"

"…—"

He quietly asked her.

He heard her breath sharply inhale.

He was horrifically terrified that she would hear the beat of his racing heart.

How disgraceful.

The him right now wasn't like his usual self.

He did not know this side of him.

What he wanted to do, he had no clue.

The fear of Kasane leaving him only tightened his embrace around her.

"I, I'm… a high school student, you know?"

"…I know that already."

"I'm not beautiful an-and I'm not… that stylish as well…"

"…That isn't what I asked you! I'm asking if you want to go out with me or not!"

"…Th-that is…"

Kasane faltered.

Faintly, he felt the warmth of her cheeks heat up.

Unsurely she spoke up.

"…I, I—"

**TBC**

* * *

Ahem, only one more chapter until this arc ends! For those who were waiting for the next update, I apologize. I will upload the next chapter as fast as I can. Have a nice day!


	16. 10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III Part 6

Disclaimer: All credit goes to Shingo Nanami and フクロウ. Well then everyone, here is the final conclusion of arc three! Enjoy!

* * *

10 Ways To Drop A Stray Cat III

Part Six

* * *

"I heard everything! Is it true that you're going out with that high school girl now!?

Sliding into the bar, the drunk Toukichirou clanged onto Nobunaga.

Ignored by Nobunaga, Toukichirou turned to Nouhime, who was grinning cheerfully at them.

"That right you know~? Actually I met her alone some time ago and she's so cute and such a good girl! She's wasted on a guy like him!"

"Eehhh! I'm jealous~! Don't you have a picture of her? A picture!"

"I got one on my phone!"

"Eh! Show me!"

"Oi…"

Taking out her cellphone, she showed him the picture that contained the selfie she took with Kasane. His eyes twinkled at the photo.

"She not like an adult like I imagined, but she's ultra cute! Must be nice having this kind of girl as your girlfriend Tono!"

"Hmph."

Using Kasane as a way to get jeered and teased, he looked displeasingly at his colleagues.

"Must be nice… maybe you could give her to me…"

He drew close to Nobunaga, but the latter sharply glared at Toukichirou. As the man trembled, Nobunaga boldly laughed.

"As long as I life, that person is mine. As if I'll hand her over to you."

As Nobunaga spoke fondly of the girl, Nouhime and Toukichirou both heaved a sigh of relief and thanked for the meal* and chorused of "good work."

* * *

"…"

In front of Ikeda there sat a delighted Nobunaga. Never has he seen him this happy before. He sat at an open seat.

"Ah! Ikeda-san you came! Wanna order somethin'?"

Tactfully, Toukichirou handed the bar's menu over to Ikeda.

With a small bow as he took the menu, he turned to the first page.

Fragmentally listening into Nobunaga's conversation, it seems that it went well with Kasane.

Both of them are awkward and thickheaded and not honest with their feelings so they made a huge detour, but it looks like their relationship is fine now.

"What?"

"…Nothing."

Noticing Ikeda's gaze on him, Nobunaga bemusedly asked. Dodging Nobunaga's gaze, Ikeda returned his attention to the menu in his hands.

Nobunaga doesn't know that he's acquainted with that girl yet. The girl still doesn't know that he and Nobunaga were old acquaintances.

But one day there'll come a time when they'll both find out.

There might be a time when she will join their group to eat out like this.

When that time comes, that man in front of him and the young girl will be surprised, but they'll probably laugh at the interesting coincidence.

The girl's smiling face will now be next to Tono's side.

…As long as she's smiling, he's fine with just that.

**TBC**

* * *

*Here they imply the meal as his love life. After hearing everything, they say 'thanks for the meal' like they ate everything. Something like that.

Whew, I'm glad I made it. I don't know how my schedule will be like when I get to college, but I will try to upload as soon as possible. I hope you enjoyed this arc, and I'll return back to Owari's Stray. I hope everyone has a lovely day.


End file.
